2 Corinthians 5:1-10

This is a paper that I wrote for my 2 Corinthians class. The reasons that I will post some of my own work for classes are two fold: 1. My writing needs to be critique and challenged. I will never become a better writer, arguer, and thinker if people don’t question my reasoning and point out my errors in writing. So please, if you read these let me know where you disagree with me with precision, not just a general “I don’t like.” Let me know what you don’t like and why you don’t like it. This would be a help to me to interact with you and hopefully sharpen both of our thinking. 2. Because what things I do study need to be passed on to aid others. Not that I have a lot of deep, spiritual things to say. But I want to aid in pointing people to Christ in any way I can. So enjoy!

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2 Corinthians 5:1-10

Introduction

The Apostle Paul’s aim was to be a faithful witness of the gospel among the Gentiles. Yet, he was not what the Greeks would consider an astounding speaker. One could even say that he was the opposite of a good Greek speaker. Yet, he was faithful in spreading the gospel amongst Gentile cities. One of which was Corinth. But after some time false teachers had crept in and were trying to turn the Corinthians’ hearts away from Paul by claiming that he was not a true Apostle. Paul wrote 2 Corinthians in attempt to win their hearts back.

In 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 we see one among many appeals Paul made to the Corinthians in the book. The appeal which Paul makes in theses verses is that his ministry, as an Apostle, is not discredited because of his weak appearance. Paul had a hope that even though his ministry had taken such a toll on his body, he had a future resurrection that he was going to partake of. And such a hope gave him courage to press on in faithful ministry.

Body

This paper will argue that the above statement is communicated through 2 Corinthians 5:1-10. This will be done by looking at the context in which the section of 2 Corinthians is placed. Then it will be established by looking at individual aspects of the section. Verses 1-5 will show that Paul is talking about a resurrection which he is looking forward too. Verses 6-10 will communicate the courage for ministry which he received from the hope of the resurrection.

Context

Let us look back at the surrounding context to get the full picture. In chapter 4 verse 7 Paul begins by contrasting the treasure of the message found in verses 4-6 of the same chapter to the frailty of the minister, “We have this treasure (the ministry) in jars of clay (the minister, i.e. himself)” (4:7). What follows in verses 8-15 are the afflictions which Paul experienced in his ministry. While the message that he carried was glorious, the trials that the ministry put him through were anything but glorious.[1] Yet in verses 13-15 Paul keeps proclaiming the message which he had believed in.

In verse 16 Paul starts off by referring back to something previous which he had said. There is disagreement about the reference for “Διὸ”. [2] I believe, however, that Paul is referring back to verse 14 where he states his hope in the future resurrection.[3] We should see Verse 15 as part of the resurrection hope expressed in verse 14.[4] For in this verse Paul expressed certainty that the Corinthians would be in the presence of God. For he had suffered the affliction listed in verses 8-12 so that the grace[5] of the Spirit’s work of unveiling eyes could be given to them. They then believed in this message of grace delivered to them. Thus, verse 16 goes back to the hope of the resurrection which Paul expressed in 14.

Yet a sharp distinction between the resurrection and the ministry at Corinth should not be made.[6] Paul’s sacrifice had given which made him look forward to the resurrection was the sufferings for the Corinthians. Even though Paul has gone through tribulations, the ministry was being accomplished. The Corinthians came to accept the gospel. Paul had completed this ministry of unveiling eyes to the glory of the Lord (3:1-18) among the Corinthians. He had seen the gospel do its work in their very lives. He sold himself out for them. All the afflictions listed through this section was all for their sakes (15a). He poured himself out so that they could be recipients and benefactors of this veil removing ministry and He knows that they will be present with him at the resurrection of Christ.

Now Paul shifts from speaking about his ministry to his weakness of appearance. He had made this sacrifice of ministry even though it has taken a toll on His body.[7] The key to understanding what is going on in this context is found in 5:12. There Paul makes the comment about “those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart.” “His deteriorating physical condition and shameful plight caused some in Corinth…to wonder out loud about his power as an apostle.”[8] The false teachers were attacking Paul on the grounds that He was weak in appearance[9] and “a minister of a covenant more glorious than Moses’ covenant could be expected to be a glorious figure.”[10] Garland points out another issue as well when he states, “Some in the ancient world interpreted affliction as a sign of god’s judgment and as something dishonorable.”[11] Whatever the specific reason was, the false apostles were attacking Paul about his appearance. Apparently the Corinthians were beginning let these charges get to them. Could they really trust a person that had such a weak appearance?

Paul, however, knew the truth about this world. Physical decay and abuse are not reasons to doubt one’s ministry. “On the contrary”, the abuse of his body in the present is in no comparison to the glory which he will receive. Paul says that he knows that the afflictions of this age are preparing him for a coming glory which cannot be compared to anything on this earth (4:17). So, Paul keeps his vision located on the future where eternal things reside (18).[12]

That is the context of 5:1-10. Paul is expounding to the Corinthians that his physical well being is not that important. He has given himself for their spiritual welling being. And the physical cost of it will be repaid when he dies. So, in 5:1-10 Paul is expounding on way the decay of his physical body is of little concern to him.

Verses 1-5

Verses 1-5 are about a future dwelling with the Lord when one dies. Paul expounds upon the statement that the gaze of the Christian should be on what is eternal. What is found in these verses is Paul looking ahead to the resurrection which he had talked about in his first letter to the Corinthians. Here he expounds on the future resurrection again but in somewhat different language. But the thoughts are the same. “The groaning and burden associated with the present body will give way to the stability and delight of being clothed with a new body.”[13]

To see this meaning we have to look at the parallel passage in 1 Corinthians. Then the text itself has to be studied. But, before we look at that; an issue regarding the eschatology of Paul needs to be considered.

Did Paul change his view of the time of his death and the coming of Christ? Harris would argue that Paul had an encounter with death while he was in Asia. And this encounter changed his understanding of his death and the coming of Christ. Before this, Paul would see himself living until the coming of Christ. But because of this brush with death Paul recognized that he was not going to survive until the coming of Christ. Paul is then expressing that change of belief in this passage.[14]

I believe an important general note can be brought up to help answer this question. Paul is not writing out a systematic theology on eschatology. He has a point to make to the Corinthians and against the false teachers. Penna is correct when he writes,

“The mistake of the commentators has perhaps been to try to be clearer than Paul himself…Paul does not offer dogmatic solutions but rather offers only certain suggestions, opens up certain ways of looking at the at it, confirms or excludes certain perspectives typical of the Christian faith.”[15]

We have to be careful that we are not trying to find more than what the Biblical writers were saying in what they wrote. Paul is not writing a dissertation on the end times but making a specific point by using some truths of the eschatos.

Since that is the case a strong point can be made against the idea that Paul is changing his mind about the coming of Christ. Schreiner articulates the point precisely, “This text [2 Cor. 5:1-10], however, is too ambiguous to signal such a change. Since Paul addresses the same church, he would have needed to make it much clearer that he was proposing a different time for the resurrection.”[16] So, there is not enough evidence presented in this text which should make us think that Paul is changing mind about the coming of Christ.

We have then established the fact that there is not enough to support the idea that Paul was changing his mind about the second coming of Christ in 2 Cor. 5:1-10. We can now study the individual aspects of the text to see that it, indeed, points to Paul’s hope in the future resurrection.

Let us look, first, at the parallel passage to this one in 1 Corinthians 15:35-57. There Paul discusses the resurrection from the dead as well. Paul talks about “What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.” (1 Cor. 15:42b). Regarding the body Paul refers to it as dying in “weakness”, “natural”, and “from earth” from verse 42-47. Also, Garland points out the correlating use of clothing terminology, of the term “perishable”, and the endings between these two passages.[17] Both talk about being clothed when the believer dies. Both speak about the body as perishing. And both end the section alluding to the same very, Isaiah 25:8. “This parallel with [1 Corinthians 15] opens the way to a true understanding of the contrast in 5:1-4 between the present body and the future one.”[18] Therefore, since there is a parallel of themes and terms used between 1 Corinthians 15:35-57 and 2 Corinthians 5:1-4 we should understand the main topic to be the same—namely resurrection.

With that correlation in mind we can look at the language Paul is using to see that he is talking about a future resurrection. What we have now is a ἡ ἐπίγειος οἰκία τοῦ σκήνους, “an earthly tent-dwelling.”[19] The τοῦ σκήνους should be taken as an epexegetical genitive[20] which explains the meaning of the word it is attributed to. When our temporary structure will be torn down (καταλυθῇ) we have a οἰκοδομὴν ἐκ θεοῦ ἔχομεν,[21] οἰκίαν ἀχειροποίητον αἰώνιον ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, “a building from God, a dwelling not made with human hands, eternal in the heavens.” For this eternal dwelling we grown (στενάζομεν), longing to put it on.

Following the context of the pervious verse Paul is obviously talking about the eternal things which He looks to. And there is a clear contrast going on through these passages. But what is Paul talking about when he says we are in a ἡ ἐπίγειος οἰκία τοῦ σκήνους, and looking forward to a οἰκοδομὴν ἐκ θεοῦ ἔχομεν, οἰκίαν ἀχειροποίητον αἰώνιον ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς?

Looking at the terms Paul used we can see the resurrection being describe. The first term that he employs is a “tent” (οἰκία τοῦ σκήνους). Our present bodies are like a tent. A tent “is a common picture of the earthly life and its setting in the body.”[22] Using the tent imagery, “describes only the instability, and thus the vulnerability, of one’s mortal existence.”[23] Most commentators would also point to the use of the term in Wisdom 9:15 as referring to a body. This view also fits the context from 4:16-18 where Paul has been giving a contrast of the earthly and the eternal. Understanding the term to denote a human body fits very well here.[24]

Then, opposed to this weak tent, the believer will receive an eternal dwelling. There have been many proposals to what the term οἰκοδομὴν means here. Thrall lists nine different understandings of this term: 1) An individual resurrection body. 2) A heavenly habitation in the sense of the dwelling mentioned in John 14:2. 3) An interim heavenly body, received immediately after death. 4) A kind of spiritual garment, received in baptism, worn beneath the ‘garment’ of the material body and preserved beyond the grave. 5) The body of Christ. 6) The heavenly temple. 7) The resurrection body of Christ. 8 ) An image of the glory of the eschatological age. 9) The heavenly dimension of present existence.[25] Yet, the most agreed upon immediate meaning would be the spiritual body one would receive at the resurrection.[26] Harris states the point clearly, “in view of 4:16a, it seems incontestable that the ἐπίγειος οἰκία of 5:1a alludes primarily, if not solely, to the physical body and that therefore it would destroy the parallelism and opposition of the two parts of 5:1,”[27] Thus, while the body that Paul possesses now will be destroyed, an eternal body is waiting for Him in the future. [28]

The final question we have to ask is concerning the meaning of the word “γυμνοὶ” in verse 3. The verse begins be stating that by putting on[29] this heavenly dwelling we may not be found “naked”. So the meaning of “naked” has direct influence on the understanding of the previous terms.

There are three main understandings of this term.[30] It is either understood as “homeless,” “garmentless,” or “bodiless.” The understanding of “homeless” is to use architectural language which matches the terms “tent” and “building” in verses 1-2. But this understanding can be dismissed due to the fact that the word does not carry such a meaning.[31]

The term “garment” would be used to covey a moral view. Meaning, Paul does not want to be found being guilty of sin before God.[32] Two problems become apparent with this suggestion, however. The first is that moral judgment is not in the immediate context. We do not see judgment until verse 10. So, where it could be a possibility, it should not be our first choice since the theme of mortal judgment is not found in the immediate context. The second problem is that the correlating word used in verse 4, ἐκδύσασθαι, is unquestionably referring to resurrection.[33] Because when one is clothed, the mortal (τὸ θνητὸν) is swallowed up by life (τῆς ζωῆς). And such language conveys a resurrection, not a moral standing.

Thus, the “bodiless” understanding is the best.[34] It fits with the over all context of resurrection. It, also, fits with the specific terms Paul uses in this section. Thus Paul is saying that by putting on this heavenly dwelling he will not be found in a bodiless state. [35] So, Paul is looking forward to the day when he will receive his resurrection body.

So after looking through this section we see Paul, speaking in the language of buildings and clothing to describe the future resurrection that awaits him. When Paul says that he is presently living in a ἡ ἐπίγειος οἰκία τοῦ σκήνους we understand him saying that he lives in a fragile body. Yet he knows that when the tent is destroyed he will posses a οἰκοδομὴν ἐκ θεοῦ which is a future resurrected body. And because he knows he will posses it there is no fear that he will be γυμνοὶ, or bodiless.

Therefore, though some may consider a battered and bruised body something to be ashamed of, Paul sees it differently. A battered and bruised body is only temporal. What Paul looks forward is a heavenly dwelling that will clothe him for eternity.

Verse 6-10

Because of the future hope that is before him Paul can make it his aim to be pleasing to God. In verses 6-10 Paul expresses the courage which he has because of this promise and what he is working towards before he reaches that hope. In other words, he can give himself to gospel ministry because of this future hope. This section will argue that Paul sees the future hope as a base for the courage to do his ministry.

Paul has a courage to accomplish the ministry which streams from the faith on the guarantee of the Spirit. The οὖν of verse 1 looks back to the preceding guarantee of the future resurrection which is given by the Spirit.[36] The perfect participle εἰδότες is casual in its function.[37] The truth that Paul is still in this body and not with the Lord is another reason for the courage. Thus, there is the promise that supplies the courage and the task that demands the courage. For in verse 7 Paul expresses having faith in the promises of God and not on what he sees. Then Paul illiterates again in verse 8 about the courage which he has while expressing his desire to be with the Lord.[38] Paul can face the afflictions upon his body by the ministry because he is “confident that God will supply a superior replacement for [his body].”[39] Thus, courage fills Paul as he performs his calling as an apostle.

Paul’s courage is directed at the single aim to be well pleasing to Christ so that he could stand confidently before the judgment seat of Christ. Whether Paul was ἐνδημοῦντες or ἐκδημοῦντες Paul sought to be pleasing in his actions. For him, “what is alone important is whether one’s service as an apostle is finally judged acceptable to the Lord.”[40] This is completely contrary to the critics who would try to discount him based on weak appearance. For Paul, what ultimately mattered was God’s view of his ministry, not man’s.[41] Because it would be before Christ’s judgment seat where the deeds done in the body would be judged as to whether they were good or bad.

One must ask about the nature of the judgment being described here. Every Christian will have to stand before this judgment seat. The verdict of this seat will render to everyone what they have done in the body. So, will salvation or rewards be rendered at this judgment? Harris argues that “the tribunal of Christ is concerned with the assessment of works not the determination of destiny.”[42] Thus, “not status but reward is determined”[43] by this judgment seat.

Yet, other would see the judgment seat determining more than the distribution of rewards or loss of rewards. “The reward in these texts is eternal life itself.”[44] Thus, when standing before the judgment seat of Christ, one’s eternal destiny is at stake.

Two factors tip the scales towards understanding the judgment seat as eternally significant. The first is that when Paul speaks of God’s coming judgment it has eternal significance. At God’s righteous judgment He will render to each man according to his work, and he renders eternal life or wrath and fury (Rom. 2 5-8). We cannot be fully judged by human courts, but the Lord judges us. The Lord will bring every thing to light and each one will receive his commendation from God (1 Cor. 4:3-5). The second reason is that Paul more than likely has the false teachers in view when he writes this verse. The false teachers “advertise themselves as people who do good works and claim to be ‘servants of righteousness’ (2 Cor. 11:15), but all of this is subterfuge. The good works are lacking, ‘and their end shall be according to their works.’”[45] Therefore, when believers stand before the judgment seat of Christ they approach for the determination of their destiny.

How is this reconciled with the Biblical truth of justification by faith alone? Schreiner helpfully explains,

“God’s judgment on that day will be according to works but not on the basis of works (Rom. 2:6-10; 2 Cor. 5:10)…These good works are the fruit of faith and a result of the Spirit’s works. They do not, in and of themselves, achieve salvation…Future justification, then, is the manifestation of present justification.”[46]

Thus, the declaration made at the judgment seat of Christ will correspond with the declaration made when a believer puts true faith in Jesus Christ, “justified!” For the works displayed at the judgment seat will be the manifestations of a true faith.

So in conclusion to this section we see that the future hope which Paul looks towards gives him courage to complete the ministry. And this hope presses him on in the glorious pursuit to be found well pleasing to God on the final judgment day.

Conclusion

Therefore, we have clearly seen that Paul’s hope was laid in the future resurrection which he would attain. Though his opponents claimed that the afflictions which he had gone through discredited him as a faithful apostle, Paul knew other wise. He willing let his body suffer affliction and bruising for the sake of taking the gospel to the Corinthians. Paul could do this because he had a hope of a future resurrection where the weak tent where he presently resided in would be replaced by a dwelling from God. This dwelling would be an eternal residence so that he would not have to exist in a bodiless state. Thus, he fulfilled the callings of his ministry with courage. Because he knew that he would have to stand before the judgment seat of Christ to give an account of his faithfulness.

Devotional

Safety, security, and peacefulness are words that can describe too much of American evangelicalism. Not only that, but when we think of preachers we think of preachers nicely dressed in the attire we deem appropriate. Whether it be a two piece suit of shorts with a T-shirt. We want them to look the way we want them to look. Given those reasons Paul would probably be an outcast in our churches. He was not safe, and he did not look the part.

Yet, that is how true gospel ministry is suppose to look like. By giving oneself for the glory of God and to love people by telling them the gospel message—and that is what Paul looked like. His eyes were centered on being well pleasing to God and his heart was poured out for the Corinthians. And he did this no matter if it took him to places where he abounded in material things or to places where death seemed imminent.

The encouragement that was set before His eyes in all of this was the hope of the resurrection. He knew that the suffering, caused by being faithful to God would be compensated in full by his Lord. Thus, he pressed on no matter how much it cost. May our eyes be opened to the inheritance that is ours in Christ Jesus as Paul’s eyes were open to it!

[4] Alfred Plummer, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, International Critical Commentary (New York, NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1915), 134.

[5] Furnish would say that the “ἡ χάρις” is possibly referring to “that grace by which apostles are commissioned to the service of the gospel.” Victor Paul Furnish, II Corinthians, In The Anchor Bible, vol. 32a.

(Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1984), 287. Yet, this makes no sense. For the ministry that Paul was talking about was “διʼ ὑμᾶς” (for your sake), as Thrall points out. Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 344-45. How was Paul’s apostleship suppose to spread through the Corinthians? Thus I agree with Thrall, as do Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 356. and Garland, 2 Corinthains, 237-238. that there is a salvific meaning in ἡ χάρις. So I take ἡ χάρις to be referring back to the grace which Paul was describing in 3:12-18.

[6] Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 358.

[7] This “outer self” should not be understood to refer to the same concept as “the old man” Paul talks about in Romans. Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 350; Furnish, II Corinthians, 289. It is to be taken as speaking to “his life as a mere man.” Martin, 2 Corinthians, 91.

[12] Much discussion has occurred on the topic of anthropology because of Paul’s statements of the “inner man” and “outer man.” The debate centers on dualism and the nature of body and soul. Such a discussion does not affect the thesis of this paper so it will be passed by. Sufficient to conclude on this matter is Garland’s admonition no to divorce these verses from the resurrection theme coming in 5:1-10. Ibid., 245.

[19] Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 370. See Also Furnish, II Corinthians, 292

[20] Barrett, , A Commentary on The Second Epistle to The Corinthians, 150. Plummer, The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 142. and Thrall The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 360. would see it as a genitive of apposition. The meaning of the phrase, however, is not changed by this.

[21] A issue is raised about meaning of ἔχομεν being a present active. What does Paul mean when he says that we have this dwelling from God in the present? Garland would see the verb meaning that we receive a resurrection body immediately upon our death. Garland, 2 Corinthians, 251-252.

However it is best to take the present as a futuristic present. Andrew T. Lincoln, Paradise Now and Not Yet (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981), 64. Cf. also Plummer, The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 144 and Barrett, A Commentary on The Second Epistle to The Corinthians, 151. Also, understanding the verb in this way would not cause a problem with the word γυμνοὶ in verse 3. Cf. Ben Witherington III, Jesus, Paul and the End of the World (Downners Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 1992), 205-206.

[22] Barrett, A Commentary on The Second Epistle to The Corinthians, 151.

[23] Furnish, II Corinthians, 293

[24] For a good summary of the literary evidence behind this understanding of the term see Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 357-359.

[25] Ibid., 360-367.

[26] Garland, 2 Corinthians, 250-51, Plummer, The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 142. Martin, 2 Corinthians, 103. Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 367.

[27] Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 372.

[28] Although, while the primary understanding of these terms should be a body. One should not throw out, all together, a temple conection being made by Paul here. Our bodies are presently the temple of God (1 Cor 6:19). And Beale points out that the phrase, “not made with hands,” is “virtually everywhere else a technical way of speaking about the new eschatological temple. G. K. Beale, The Temple and the Church’s Mission: A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God, New Studies in Biblical Theology, vol 17. ed. D. A. Carson (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 257. Also, one can make the association of the “tent” with the tabernacle. Thrall would even allow tabernacle imagery to remain while not making it the primary meaning, Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 361-362. Thus, the idea that Paul is making a temple connection here should not be dismissed entirely. One will have to hold that Paul is talking about the real resurrection and body and the eschatological temple at the same time.

[32] And there can be different types of this “moral” belief. For example, Furnish would see “having once clothed ourselves” in verse 3 referring to baptism. Thus naked is denying one’s baptism and so being found alienated from Christ. Furnish, II Corinthians, 298.

[33] Lincoln, Paradise Now and Not Yet, 66.

[34] Barrett, A Commentary on The Second Epistle to The Corinthians, 156. Martin, 2 Corinthians, 105-106. Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 387-388. Garland, 2 Corinthians, 259-260. Plummer, The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 147. Thrall, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 379. Lincoln, Paradise Now and Not Yet, 66

[35] This should not be taken as if Paul does not believe in an intermediate state. See fn. 38 below for a fuller discussion on this issue.

[38] There is a question about the intermediate state when looking at verse 8. Is Paul saying that there is a state of being bodiless which one enters into while they await the resurrection? Or should Paul’s desire not to be found bodiless in verse 3 deny such a belief?

Verses 3 and 4 should not be seen as denying the intermediate state. Two reasons can be given for this. The first is that the topic of an intermediate state is not a concern for Paul at this point. Just as it is with the argument against the “garment” understanding of clothing, an interjection about the intermediate state is out of context. What Paul is arguing for is the greatness of the future body that he will posses. We should not try to read too much about a particular question into one term when the context is not about the particular question. The second one is that just because Paul does not want to exist in a bodiless state does not mean that he would deny such state. He does clearly, though sparsely, speak of being with the Lord right after he would die (2 Cor 5:8, Phil 1:23). Paul’s focus on the intermediate state is lacking “precisely because it is intermediate and temporary.” Thomas R. Schreiner, Paul: Apostle of God’s Glory in Christ (Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity Press, 2001), 466. He does not look to the intermediate state but beyond it. He is not against the intermediate state and would rather be in it but, “His preference is for the final state.” Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God, 367.

For a defense that the intermediate state is being referred to in verse 8 see Harris, The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, 400-401.

[39] Barrett, A Commentary on The Second Epistle to The Corinthians, 158.

3 comments

did you explore a better meaning of oikia tou skenous (house of the tabernacle or household of the tabernacle) rather than assume, like too many others, that the phrase is a euphemism for the human body? It seems that the parallel between 2 Cor 5.1 and Hebrews 9.11 shouldn’t be dismissed. Paul might be talking about the Jewish religion or our persecuted church and the longing for the New Jerusalem.

I believe as the Rev. Billy Graham, BTh, BA that 2 Corinthians 1-5 has to do with the resurrection at the Second Advent of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5: 6-8 has to do with the moment of death when the human spirit leaves the earthly body behind to go to heaven until Jesus returns to earth with them so that they may receive their resurrection bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). 2 Corinthians 5:10 is related to the Last Judgment after Jesus returns.

Charles E. Miller, Jr., BA in German, Old Dominion University; MAR, Liberty University School of Divinity